Caravan Update

Work is progressing on the final touches for the caravan.

I poured epoxy resin on top of the logs I'm going to use for the outdoor surfboard seat in order to prevent waterlogging from the top. Rain landing on the surfboard will naturally run underneath it and soak the logs, weakening any bond between the logs and the surfboard. This precludes that.

I'll additionally drill some holes into the log tops and fill them with resin before using resin to effect the bond between the surfboard and the logs, thus giving a deep key into the wood and prevent the surfboard being prised off. Might even use a couple of recessed bolts to put into the drilled holes.

Talking of epoxy resin, I received the 1970s Georgia Jacob lamp I bought on eBay for Hay's birthday. Here it is lit up in an outhouse, where I'm hiding it till her birthday.

I cleaned it up and was surprised to discover the shade wasn't glass, but epoxy impregnated cloth. Intrigued, I watched some YouTube videos on making resin lamp shades and it's not that difficult, although none of the ones in the videos use cloth. 

The square of cloth is apparently soaked in epoxy resin, allowed to cure slightly and then draped over a stand so as to develop the characteristic folds during the final cure, using a heat gun to effect slight adjustment of the folds as necessary. I've ordered 2kg of clear, epoxy resin and am going to have a go at making one myself. The lamp bases are easy to buy on eBay for a few quid.

I've also ordered a few koi molds and am going to try to create a translucent koi lamp. Watch this space.

Hay might decide to use the Jacob lamp in the caravan (which was the intent of the purchase), although I doubt it, as it casts a wonderful, warm glow and would be perfect in the house - and it is a birthday present, after all. It's also a tad expensive for the caravan - one of my own home-made efforts might be more suited.

Another touch for the caravan living room was purchased yesterday from a workshop a couple of miles from me.

A stag's head on a piece of rustic oak. That's destined to go on the wall over the TV. An enterprising young local chap makes all manner of stuff from oak - tables, chargers, wall hangings, doorstops, etc. 

Just the art works we've commissioned from a friend are left to be done, but they may take a month or two to be completed due to prior commitments.

While rummaging around in the house, I came across the phone I bought a couple of years ago. The rotary dial is in the base. 

I somehow suspect Hay has plans to sell it - over my dead body! She has a horrible habit of selling anything that's not been used in the last 6 months. Calls them dust collectors - I call them vintage artefacts. 

We don't have a phone plugged into our domestic phone connection, as we rely 100% on our mobile phones - haven't done so for well over a year. I wonder if anyone else never uses their landline phone? 

Once our domestic, fibre internet contract expires, I'm going to change it to a 4G router connection, like we have in the caravan, which is cheaper, faster and can be taken with us wherever we go - even in the motorhome (depending on coverage in some of the out-of-the-way places we stay). I must check the power consumption of the 4G router and see whether we can run it off the motorhome leisure batteries through the inverter. Can't see it having much of a drain - it's essentially a stripped down mobile phone. Looking on-line, I estimate about 10 Watts max, which isn't much at all, but will check on the unit itself. Some of them can be run off standard batteries for up to 6 hours, allegedly.

In terms of bookings, we have already had two bookings over the recent holiday period and someone has booked a week at the end of June. Now is the slack period till half term.